Chapter 12

Sky Rope

A/N - Thanks to everyone who made guesses about the Dreampaths in the last chapter. It was fun reading them, and most of you were spot on or pretty close! I really appreciate your playing along with the game! The answers? Path 1: Kokopelli (Old Man Coyote) and his coyote tricksters, including Wile E. Coyote, the Warner Brothers (modern Day) trickster coyote. Path 2: Alec and the Black on the island from Walter Farley's "The Black Stallion", also made famous in the 1980 Francis Ford Copolla movie of the same name. Path 3: Thank you to Antic Repartee (AvannaK on Deviant Art) for letting me use her Hiccup and Toothless from the Hitchups Fiction! It fit the Heinlein alternate timeline really well. Thank you! If you haven't read it, check it out. It has the most reviews of any HTTYD fanfiction, and it deserves them for its clever and quality storytelling.

Also, part of this chapter refers back to Chapter 6. where Eyeful first hears forge priests discuss the origin of Turkmenes. Since it's been some time between chapters, I wanted to mention that so you can refer back to that chapter if you were curious (or happen to be really bored).

Disclaimer: I can't take credit for the concepts of Terrible Terrors, Night Furies, Hiccup, Toothless. But I am in awe of Dreamworks and Cressida Cowell. The other characters are mine, and I paid them a lot to say that.

"I had taken a partner once before—but, damnation, no matter how many times you get your fingers burned, you have to trust people. Otherwise you are a hermit in a cave, sleeping with one eye open."- R.A. Heinlein, "he Door Into Summer

"Lux, your tail seems shorter today," Setareh's voice, now ragged and hoarse, caught my attention as she stirred from her bed roll. Fawn-colored Kourosh thumped his feathered, long tail on the ground.

Setareh sat up on an elbow, the cloth of her sleeveless tan under clothing standing out in stark contrast to her very ashen face. The skin around her eyes seemed tight, and I wondered if her head ached.

I wanted to cheer her up.

::I found out I can shorten my tail! I can make it really long and awesome… or really short and equally awesome!:: I chirped to her, ::I've been having a grand old time making it bigger and smaller. And I can move SOOOO much easier when it is shorter. Watch, Set-air-uh!::

I wiggled my haunches a bit, summed up my strength, and then leapt up in the air, executing a forward somersault. Air blew past me, along with delighted dragon squalls and a surprised dog whoof.

:Yeeeeehaaaaaaw!:: I thought-sent in joy.

::You, go, kitten!:: Jessamine roared to me.

"Lux! You're brilliant!" Setareh laughed softly.

I realized I had forgotten one of my legs was out of commission a bit too late, as I came back to the ground. But when I landed on it, I felt no weight on it. My body had compensated for it, and I had balanced on the three good legs, aided by my wings and my now shortened (and more controllable tail).

I was pretty amazed! Carefully, I set my injured leg back on the ground.

It did not hurt at all. How could I be healing so fast? Scars from knife wounds littered my hide, and they were quite old. They had healed but never faded, yet my leg seemed to be, impossibly, healing fast.

I cocked my head in amazement.

Gatalas was awake already, shaking his bed roll in preparation of folding it up and storing it in its protective sack.

He crawled over to Setereh's side and reached out a cautious hand. The Turkmene lowered her own head as if sharing a thought with her Rider and stomped a hoof on the ground.

Gatalas adjusted his hand, as if responding to his friend's cue, and it now rested on Setareh's head. She closed her eyes and did not flinch.

"Still some fever, priest," Gatalas said softly, "But not as hot as yesterday. We should stay here and rest longer."

"No," Setareh said, gently removing the Sarmatian Firemaker's hand, "We need to move on. We can't afford to waste any more time. Those dragons keep invading. And we still don't know what happened to the other units in your Dragon, Gatalas. I'll be better, I think. I just need to start moving, and things will be fine."

The unseeing look Gatalas gave her seemed like he was not sure about that.

"We keep pressing on. We're getting close. I have a feeling we'll reach the portal very soon." Setareh continued.

The Firemakers did their morning wash ups, using peeled twigs and dried mint to scrape their teeth clean and using the mountain spring-fed river water for washing face and hands. After pulling on their fake hides and those woven animal hair coverings they use in place of scales, they downed cold tea and the remnants of the soup from the night before.

Some of the Sisters had caught a few fish from the river, and I purred my gratitude that they shared this feast with me.

::Oh, it'll be your turn soon 'nuff:: Purple Sonja told me, ::I saw dat leg. Yer getting' better, kitten. Ye can join us at hunting before ya know it.::

Gatalas hooked a nosebag around Eyeful's head so she could munch that strange, sweet smelling grainy stuff hat could keep her well fed all day, even though it was so small in quantity.

The blind man had automatically filled another nose bag. He adjusted it in his hands as Eyeful leaned over to nudge him and nickered softly, sadly.

The blond Sarmatian lowered his head and closed his eyes, sighing sadly.

Behind him, Setareh was packing away supplies. She looked at the unused nosebag in Gatalas' hands and then at the empty space near where a familiar harness and saddle was stored. She looked away for a moment, sweeping a hand across her face. Her shoulders shuddered.

::Oh, no.:: I limp-bounded up to the priest and crawled into her lap, bunting my face against her chest, rubbing my head against her collarbone, ::Oh, I miss him, too. There is such an empty space here. It hurts, it hurts. You hurt. I wish I could make you not hurt.::

I had to admit I had not expected I would do that. My typical urge around Firemaker/Monsters is to hiss and fight for all am worth.

But she had loved Ravenwing, too. And had been so closely tied to him. I had only known Ravenwing for a few days, and he had given me so much. I could only imagine how much more he had given her in confidence and protection. And, judging from their easygoing yet deep bond, how much she had given him back, too.

Soul-mates, good friends, bond brother and sister. It hurts to lose someone like that.

I just felt the urge to help make Setareh feel better, even though it was against my usual flee or fight instinct.

"Oh, Lux. I HATE being such a cry baby. I'm sorrysorrysorry. I'm getting your hide wet."

::Don't be. I needed a bath, anyway. So you're doing everyone around me a great service.::

This time Setareh laughed, and she pulled me further into her lap and hugged me deeply against her chest. Her heartbeat sounded deep and soothing in my ears.

Kourosh whined and nudged at Setareh's shoulder.

Then Gatalas and Eyeful were there, the Turkmene using her mind speech to help Guide her Rider's hand so he could rest it on Setareh's shoulder.

In his quiet way, blond, rugged and scary-looking Gatalas said nothing, but the grip of his shoulder must have said a lot without words, for Setareh relaxed more.

We remained that way, all of us, letting our forge priest friend quietly deal with her grief- and I mean quiet- her sobs were so quiet. It was as though she expected to be hit for crying.

I know, when I was a prisoner of the River Rats, exactly that would have happened to me. But these Sarmatians – who look even more terrifying than River Rat Monsters- were strangely so full of kindness and mercy. I wondered why Setareh felt shy about crying now.

The Sisters watched carefully, eyes puzzled. I think they, too, were not sure what to make of this. And I wonder if most of it was the fact I so willingly let myself be hugged by a Firemaker/Monster.

Finally, Setareh loosened her embrace on me, but I just rested my head on her shoulder and purred a bit.

"Oh, Lux. You are such a wise little soul. You knew what I needed." Setareh finally said, wiping her red rimmed, swollen eyes.

::Of course I'm wise. I'm a smart ass dragon, remember?::

"Uh, right. Of course. That says it all, kitten." The forge priest bit her lips to choke back an escaping sob, " Well, all right, gang. This signifies officially the end of the Setareh Meltdown Performance. Next show will be at dinner tonight. And there's even a discount for Amazon Terrors. Seriously, we need to move on, okay?"

The Sisters came through for us, again, taking up bits of baggage and Ravenwing's harness. Some of them even assisted Gatalas with harnessing up Eyeful.

::Oh, that's good. Indeed. These little ladies know their knots:: Eyeful said easing her shoulders into the saddle while Blossom the Butcher adjusted the neck harness with her lightning-quick claws. ::Oh, yes, that does itch, Blossom. A little further. Down. To the right. Ohhhhh…. yes. ::

Blossom chirruped, ::Good thing you are not a Person or you would have dropped to the ground and fainted in ecstasy by now. That's the BYE FOR NOW! spot on us.

Eyeful snorted softly, ::Good to know. I'll remember that the next time I am in a battle with an angry dragon and have conveniently grown a pair of hands.::

Purple Sonja was soaring in circles around the cave entrance as we emerged into a cloudy morning. She landed on Eyeful's saddled back and flipped her wings shut, ::Dat's strange. Myrtle o' no Mercy and Primrose da Berserk should have come back by now. I sent dem ahead last evening ta's scout da pass for today's journey.::

Tiny Sticky Fire Person roars came up from the river, ::Over here, Boss! We're just catching''' our breath.::

::Thank the Sky Lady you're all right!:: Jessamine roared, Sticky Person style, and she flew over to the river. I leapt after, running in my own way. I felt my long tail start to unfasten itself and coil out longer behind me as I whumpfed faster and faster.

Both the little Terrors, one charcoal gray and the other an unexceptional straw green with brown shading, were lying on their sides, breathing hard. Their claws were clutched around what looked like unfortunate birds that seemed to have been pulled out of a walnut tree; the Amazons also held walnut branches and husks in their small but formidable claws.

::What a night, I tell ya!:: the straw-green Amazon gasped, ::But I think I'll stick to mating season if I want to be swept off of my feet..::

::What happened?:: I asked, crouching down, ::Did another dragon- I mean Person- try to abduct you?:: I could remember only too well when that Naphtha Person had seized me in the valley of that Firemaker caravan a few days back.

Behind me I could hear Eyeful and the two Firemakers walking towards the river bank, hooves and booted feet swishing threw autumn swamp grass.

::Heh, if only that were the case. No, cutie pie, the shame of it is that Myrtle and I actually let ourselves get abducted of our own free will, claw, wing and flame. Totally!::

::It wasn't free will, Prim.:: the dark gray Amazon snarled, ::Something grabbed our minds as we were exploring the valley. We were making a wide circuit around the area, trying to see what might be coming your way from all directions. And we were going a quite ways back from here. So, here we're flying, nice as you please, and then…. Arrrgggggghhh::

Myrtle o' No Mercy squeezed one of green walnut fruits, and it squished into a whitish pulp, exposing the nut inside, :: Jes' like that walnut, our minds were squeezed shut.::

::But there was singin' first,:: Primrose the Berserk let go of her bird prey and moved herself to a crouching position, shaking her head in surprise, ::Makin' us feel welcome. Loved. Sayin' that we had come home.::

We all watched her. I noticed her eyes seemed very bright- unnaturally bright- but otherwise she seemed unharmed.

Gatalas listened, head cocked suspiciously and his arms crossed on his lean but strong chest. Eyeful also cocked her head the same way. If the Firemaker were not blind, I would have sworn he and his Turkmene were exchanging glances of agreement. On the other side of Eyeful, Setareh tied her leather bandanna around her head, covering her short red hair. Her scorching blue eyes were also puzzled.

No longer having contact with a Turkmene to translate for her, she was out of the loop. So I quickly thought-sent a summary of what the Sisters were discussing, and she smiled at me in warm gratitude.

::Then, next thing we knew we were flying with a large group of People of all Tribes, and somehow Myrtle and I had captured some nightjars. But every Person there was carrying something they had captured. All kind of critters. It was like the Buffet of the Damned.::

::The weirdest thing is that not all of it was prey. There were Firemaker foods, too. Why would any of the People want smoked meat or dried fish or that solid milk stuff they mold into circles... or their strange loaves of grain?:: Primrose added with a flick of her horned head, ::Then we were flyin' over this spot where all of you were camped in the cave... and suddenly Myrtle and I could think fully again! So we broke out of the group, but it was like fightin' against a high storm wind::

::I'll take the high storm wind any day.:: Myrtle snarled, ::We wound up fighting the pull on us so hard we could not keep our balance well, and we landed- quite hard I might add- near the river here. The other Peoples just flew on, not even noticing us.::

Myrtle looked down sadly at the two dead nightjars in her paws.

::And I killed two harmless nightjars for nothing. Frozen hells- we don't even EAT nightjars.::

There was a moment of silence before the air erupted into draconic squawking as the Sisters of the Scale started discussing the situation in their vibrant way (and that meant most of us had to stick claws and fingers in our ears to function normally while they 'discussed') . Most of it involved threats to defend Myrtle's and Primrose's honor and to seek vengeance for their sisters.

But Jessamine the Juggernaut made a little "hmpf- SQUEAK" sound of satisfaction from her largish nostrils, which silenced the other Amazons ::I told you:: she thought-sent to Purple Sonja, whose jaws hung open with disbelief. :: I think we've been taking part in those raids, and we just don't remember it. Our sisters have shown us. That, indeed, seems to be the case. We are joining the dragon raiders every night- we just don't remember it. And, it's only been the last few nights most of us have not been on these raids... except for Prim and Myrtle!::

::So why did Prim and I remember it so well, if this has been happening to all of us and we usually don't remember it:: Myrtle o' No Mercies asked, a claw stroking sadly up the side of a nightjar's body, her eyes narrowed in sorrow at wasting an innocent life.

Jessamine snarled softly, ::I think because something is making us stronger, making us able to resist and remember. And you especially noticed it when the horde flew back over this valley. It's because of them::

She snorted a smoke jet that hovered overhead and then fell with ashes around the Sarmatians, Eyeful, Kourosh and me.

::You just gestured to all of us,:: I said matter of factly.

::Drama, drama, drama:: Eyeful told me later as we moved along the valley, ::But it was a nice touch. If this were a chapter in a novel, it would lead into the next scene.::

"But it's not all of us, I think," Setareh said, after I translated. She balanced me in her arms as she walked, "I am pretty sure it must be the Draco banner head. It was designed to protect our troops, form a force field barrier from dragons attacking, so maybe it influences the Amazons as well- protected them when they flew in the vicinity of our cave."

"Bale," Gatalas said hesitantly, "I could see that, Setareh, but in this case the Sisters of the Scale were not being repelled by the Draco. They were being protect from whatever was ensorcelling them. Does the Draco do that?"

Setareh bit her lip, "It's a force field shield, that's true. But somehow the Sisters have been moving with us and assisting us. Maybe they are now members of our pathetic little ad hoc 'Dragon Unit' with its unique club membership of dragons, oddball Sarmatians, one strange-colored Turkmene mare and a Saluki sighthound. So, maybe, the Draco extends its shielding to them, as part of our clan. But that sounds kind of far fetched to me."

We had been moving slowly through the Rodna mountains, and I mean slowly. Now we only had one Turkmene, and Gatalas was very reluctant to have Eyeful carry both Firemakers/Monsters and our supplies. He wanted Setareh to ride Eyeful while he walked, but the forge priest was also adamant about not loading down the Turkmene.

So, boiling it down to ash, in the end, both of the Firemakers walked, and Eyeful carried packs and the two Sisters who had been ensorcelled, Primrose the Berserk and Myrtle O' No Mercies. The Amazons were grateful for the chance to rest after their experience, and they willingly curled up in the saddle, claws anchoring into the woven leather of the saddle seat.

I had decided to stick with Setareh. I had noticed- or my increasingly active ear and face sensors had noticed- she seemed to be more relaxed and less "sick" when she held me. I wondered if maybe my mind link with her was providing some comfort to her, filling in a sad hole that had been left by Ravenwing's death.

Not that I could ever hope to fill that great horse's shadow.

A good deal of the extra weight on Eyeful was now water, collected in all available skins and bags we had handy. A very useful observation that Myrtle o' No Mercies and Primrose the Berserk had brought back was that this area of our journey- the Rodna Ridge- had no source of water for many miles once we made it onto the ridge.

And they were right.

We found the Prislop pass ending and the crossed-pole marker pointing up to the Rodna Ridge. We climbed up from the river valley, heading into the heart of the Rodna Mountains region of the Carpathians. Eyeful and the Firemakers climbed stolidly up the hill, hooves and feet crunching on gravel and old rock as they did. I got the impression this was something very worrisome for the Firemakers. In their culture, they rode their horses everywhere. And the horses preferred having their Riders on their back instead of hiking next to them. Something seemed unnatural and eerie to them that the Firemakers had to walk alongside the one surviving horse of the mission.

I picked that up in the words Gatalas and Setareh tossed at each as they hiked up the pass trail, Gatalas walking next to Eyeful and gripping the handle on that leather strap around her neck, and Setareh using the battered Draco pole (we had still carried that with us) as a substandard walking stick.

It was not that the Firemakers were out of condition (though they, truly, were not used to walking so long), but they were concerned about the slow pace we were setting. But what could they do about it? We had been given these conditions by the circumstances. They were not ideal, but we all had to make them work for us as much as was possible.

We clambered onto the ridge, and I realized the ridge was a very long one. It stretched like a long, straight spine far-far-far into the distance. I could not even see where it ended, not even with my dragon eyes!

We would not be following the entire ridge, but it was long enough for me to see it really was dry and bare rock, with yellowy edges of grasses and mosses. There were plenty of frost-rimed water puddles in the shade, though it was mostly muddy puddles no one would willingly drink from if you had the chance.

This Rodna Ridge really looked like a pretty mean, nasty place to live. Which probably explains why no one lives here! (Oh, clever me!)

I learned from Setareh and Gatalas talking together (how fast I was picking up their language!), that there was a small, rough-edged Firemaker village south of this pass called Rodna, and there you could get supplies, but our Firemakers deigned not to head there. We did not want to draw any attention to ourselves- and if dragons were raiding in this area, then villages were going to be certain targets.

Plus, there was always the risk that people in this hard-edged region with few natural resources might treat us as hostile strangers. We'd already experienced an attack from a supernatural- or at least extremely unusual and dangerous creature. And the stories the friendly shepherds had told the Firemakers indicated this mountain range was rife with odd creatures. That might mean villagers would be rightfully suspicious of two very exotic looking Firemakers and their equally exotic horse and dog. To say nothing of having dragons in the party, as well!

Well, no doubt, the Sarmatians and Kourosh and the Amazons could deal well with an ambush or attack by suspicious townspeople, but they knew they did not have the time to waste on it.

Toothless' data was calling us to a spot just where there Rodna pass bled into another pass- and there the portal would be!

As we stepped onto the top of the Rodna ridge, I felt the wind blow strong against us, laden with old leaves and pine trees and many, many other trees I could not identify. And so many animals, too, that I could: rabbits and squirrels, wolves, and, far off, a musky creature whose hides were very popular as River Rat/Monster capes. Birnir- I remembered the River Rat word. Bears.

The Rodna Ridge really was like a spine that sloped down harshly on its sides, plunging steeply into valleys. The valleys were almost furry with pine trees. And also some amazingly beautiful non-pine trees. Oh, my Sky Lady! They had leaves on them that were not green! No, they were trees of a species I had never seen before: trees whose leaves grew red and gold and orange and brown instead of green!

What simple magic exists in nature! I had to clamp my jaws against a kitten like squeal of amazement. I had never, ever seen so many trees in one area! And trees of many colors!

I was not the only one: Setareh was open mouthed with a smile of pleasure.

"Oh, so many, many trees. They are beautiful, but how can you know what is coming your way when they hide the horizon. And they hide the beauty of the sunset."

:: But why would you need you need the sunset when you have trees whose leaves are the color of sunset? :: I chirped to Setareh in joy, :: Isn't it amazing how nature's like that? The people here don't get to see the sun, so the Sky Lady and the Night Lady gave them trees with leaves colored like the sunset do they would not miss it.::

Setareh cuddled me against her neck, laughing softly at my very logical theory that trees grow leaves in many colors, "Oh, Lux. I love the way you see the world. You make me remember the joy of discovery. Thank you, friend."

I purred and leaped onto her shoulder, balancing myself between her pack and shoulders. I wound my long, segmented tail around and around her left arm.

The sun had come out now, and soon it became quite hot up here, with no trees to shade us. And the rocks seemed to funnel the heat and make things even more uncomfortable. We were all appreciative of the water we had ported, and it was very easy to see there were no natural water sources, no matter how far we walked along the ridge. It was a bit funny, actually, now the valleys around this bone-dry ridge were so filled with trees and bushes and autumn grass. But the ridge was dry, dusty and gray with no plant life.

::These mountains are indeed different from others:: Eyeful told me later as our little group huddled under an overhang (it was cooler than being in the sun but not that much so) to gratefully suck down some water. The Firemakers had poured water into their food bowls and were letting dragons and dog lap up small amounts.

Gatalas was letting Eyeful drink from water cupped in his hand; she lapped it up and thought-sent to me at the same time.

::I've only seen the Pamir mountains once on a trek far to the east. We had been searching remnants of Sarmatian tribes who might have survived the plague in this timeline. But I remember the Pamir mountains had many areas of ice known as glaciers. Most mountains have those. Snow packs down in ridges and eventually it hardens into ice. When they melt in the spring, run off from them and snow in the higher altitudes gushes down the mountain sides to help create lakes and feed mountain streams.::

I flicked water from my beaked muzzle with my tongue; it was warm and tasted of the skin hide that held it, but I appreciated that we had water, in the first place. And that our wonderful Firemakers had the foresight to collect spare water and bring with them onto this dry and windy ridge. And they could not have done that without the Amazons scouting ahead and seeing there would be no water on this route.

It made me feel a tingly warmth of happiness inside. We all were helping each other instead of hurting each other. And, because of that. we could conquer this dry mountain landscape!

::I do know these mountains get snow in the winter from some of the natural features we've seen as we've crossed:: Eyeful continued, ::And that must create a lot of the water in the rivers below. But it is a bit surprising the mountains here don't have any noticeable glaciers. Little spits and snorts of glaciers here and there, but I would have expected more glaciers considering the location and how cold I have heard it gets in the winter::

::Wow, Eyeful. You sure are smart! How do you know all this stuff?:: I thumped my long tail against the ground, ::You just look at something and you just know how things work! You're almost as smart as a Firemaker... or a dragon.:: I added teasingly.

Eyeful gave a funny, snickering whicker sound, ::You're humble, aren't you, Lux? Keep thinking like that and soon your big head will lift you up and make you fly!:: She flicked her reddish brown-tipped, longish ears, ::I do know I am very smart for a horse. All Turkmenes are much smarter than most horses. It's only recently that I think I discovered why. It seems strange, but I believe the same Firemakers who sent we Raging Roughneck Sarmatians over to this timeline, also "made" us Turkmenes to be smart. I think we are some kind of information source- so I somehow have been "planted" with knowledge of how things are, and it comes out from time to time, but only when I am communicating with Gatalas or with... well, you, my little smart ass friend.::

::Wow. That's cool! So you know all this information, and we can ask you for it- Gatalas and Setareh and I and the Amazons? And you just know it?::

Gatalas smiled at me as I sent my thoughts. Eyeful must have translated for him.

::I guess so, Lux-spark:: Eyeful answered, stamping a foot against a black-fly buzzing around her back feet, ::It probably depends on knowing the right questions to ask.::

::Ooooh. Do you think you know how to make meat broth that never runs out? Or some of that honey cake? That is sososo good. Or how to make me roar so I don't sound lame? Or- or- or...you could tell me who my real parents are? Or, even, what kind of dragon I am?::

The Turkmene hung her gazelle like head in empathy, ::I wish I could tell you all of those. But I don't think I have that sort of knowledge in me. Those are things we'll have to learn from other sources. Well, except for number one and two. Eternal broth- such as it is- depends on Gatalas, Kourosh and me being good hunters. Honey cakes depends on us meeting someone who might trade for some honey cakes- not likely, but possible. As for roaring and your background. We are starting to meet friendly dragons and learn more about your People are a whole. Hopefully, we'll meet one who knows your heritage, Lux.::

::Suppose so,:: I looked down to lap up the last bit of water, but Blossom the Butcher beat me to it. She shrugged, then reached over with a paw and playfully batted my face.

I was not going to take that! I squeak-growled and leapt at her. She snarled playfully back at at me and then the two of us engaged in some nice wrestling. Some old, hidden instincts came up in me, memories of how I used to do this with other dragons who were as small as I and- maybe- my siblings? We rolled around and swatted at each other, mock growling and, mostly, purr-trilling at each other.

It ended as soon as it began. And, unfortunately, with me pinned under Blossom's prettily painted front claws.

The Amazon flicked her horns cutely and purred at me, a dragon grin on her tattooed face. Oh, she was so pretty!

::Very, good, Lux:: she dragon-laughed at me, ::You've got some good moves on you, but you need some work. Let me show you some moves later, okay?::

::Yes, please!:: I barked, ::Next time I want to be the one pinning you down!::

::That might take a while, cutiekins. But it's all about practice, practice, practice!::

Gatalas offered the golden-orange Turkmene some more water but she declined with a gentle snort and nudge. He nodded and tied the water bag back up on the saddle packs for our journey. I was kind of surprised. I know what water amount was in the bowl and what was in Gatalas' hands, and I am sure Eyeful drank far less than either Blossom or I had.

That made me realize just how much the Turkmene was really built for endurance and going for long periods without food and water.

The same for Kourosh; the sight hound had only drunk half the water in his bowl, letting two Sisters finish the rest of it. He looked up at me out of his almond shaped, warm-brown eyes and then gave me a dog's smile. He thumped his tail on the ground and then let it curl up into its usual coiled shape over his back.

I found it rather nice that Kourosh did not mindspeak like the Sisters or the Turkmene or the Firemakers, but he had no trouble letting us know what he was feeling.

We moved onwards from our break, walking slowly as the sun moved higher in the sky ahead of us. We were silent, conserving our strength, but we were also grateful for the strong winds that picked up again. They cooled our hide and skin, providing much needed relief from the sun. I found myself stretching out my wings to flex them the way the black dragon (Toothless, was it?) had taught me. It really was easy to open them, now. And flexing them against the wind actually made the muscles feel good.

I had a funny little image my wings were drinking the wind. But it did feel that way! It was like I was taking power from the wind's spirit.

::Well, :: I thought-sent to Eyeful, ::At least I don't have to ask you about how to fly. I think I learned how last night... on the Dreampaths.::

Oh dear. Talk about letting a bunch of stinging hornets fly out of the nest!

In the next few moments, I was explaining to my companions about how I had been going on the Dreampaths on my own and had been talking to the black dragon that Eyeful had first shown me. He had been showing me some tricks about how to exercise to improve my skills for flying and breathing fire. (I deliberately left out the detours along the way on the Dreampaths- except for the Sarmatian Hiccup and Toothless).

At first I thought Eyeful and Gatalas would be angry at me since both of them had become very tense, and Gatalas had a grim look on his blind face. I resolved not to cringe like I would have a few weeks ago, so I stood my ground.

But they were not mad at me... they were mad at themselves! Apparently they felt they had brought some pain and suffering on Toothless by passing on the data he had given them to their priests... the very same data now guiding us. Toothless' own people had punished him and exiled him; that was why he seemed so despondent when I had spoken to him, not to say beaten up, as well.

They both grilled me on how Toothless looked. How was he in spirit? Did he say anything about them or how much he hated them?

I assured them he did not mention them at all. That seemed to put Gatalas and Eyeful at ease. They walked side by side as I sat on Setareh's shoulders as she walked nearby. Small rocks crunched under their feet, hooves and dog paws. We had not stopped moving during this exchange; we needed to get as far as we could, and we no longer had two horses to go faster.

"We owe Toothless a chance at vengeance," Gatalas explained to me. He translated this through Eyeful, but I realized he did not have to. I now was understanding more and more of his words as if the more I trusted him, the more I could understand his thoughts and words, "We wronged him, so the next time he meets us on the Dreampaths, we must be ready to fight him if he challenges us."

::Da's insane!:: Purple Sonja chirruped as the landed for a moment on Eyeful's back, once I translated Gatalas' words, ::Ye know he'll kill youse, right? Lightning Breathers never, ever lose.::

"We're Sarmatians," Gatalas gave his amazingly silly looking grin of irony, "There's no 'logic' in 'Sarmatian.' "

I then explained, stretching my wings against the wind from where I perched on Setareh's shoulders, about the last time I saw Toothless on the Dreampaths. It was Toothless, but yet not the same Toothless. And there had been a Sarmatian named Hiccup- and, now that I thought of it, the second time I had met Toothless on the Dreampaths he had been with a RIVER RAT named Hiccup. Both had the same general coloring, but the Sarmatian version seemed to be older and stronger and- well, what would you expect- more Sarmatian.

I knew it! Hiccup HAD been a River Rat slave and the second sighting just proved it. There, he had been sleeping next to Toothless, small and starved from his evil treatment at the hands of the Monster River Rats who had held him hostage. Somehow he had escaped from bondage with Toothless and he had fled back to his people again and they took him him. He became strong and tall, and now he ant Toothless wandered the world, guiding lost little dragons- just like Gatalas and Eyeful.

Oh, I am very clever at solving these mysteries!

"That makes sense according to the Time C- whoops. Sorry, slip of the tongue," Setareh said, nipping her lower lip in her teeth, "I mean the priests who sent us here taught us. There is more than one time line, and a person on one Timeline- this Hiccup, for example- and what an odd name! On one timeline he is the way you and Eyeful remember him, Gatalas. But another timeline, he is someone very different- obviously he's either made a choice that put him on a path to live more like nomadic Sarmatians... or the timeline he lived on forced him onto that path by the type of environment."

"What do you mean, o nerdy one, by environment?" Gatalas asked Setareh with a friendly wink of a scarred eyelid.

"Well, the usual things that stir up humanity: war, drought, climate change. Who knows? Maybe his people live on the Steppes in his Timeline, not the North Atlantic and so they live like Steppe people rather than sea faring River Rats."

I snorted rudely from my noise in a way that would have made Ravenwing very pleased.

I personally liked my theory better.

::Well,:: I finally said, ::He did show me how I can fly.::

That, indeed, caused us to stop, not in surprise, but because the two nerds of our party had to decipher what Hiccup had told him in those Dreampaths.

It was really quite weird. Setareh had a strange way of "coaxing" the data I had memorized from my sensors, what she referred to as a Memory Stone.

("All dragons have 'em, but certain tribes, like the Lightning Breathers have more receptive memory stones than others, so they can contain more data")

It was a gentle process, even a pleasant sensation, like someone was mentally stroking inside my skull, soothing me, helping me to ease my data over. And the beauty is, that even though I shared it, the data was still there.

"Why wouldn't it be?" Gatalas asked from where he sat cross-legged by the Turkmene's legs, "Knowledge is the one thing that can never be taken from you."

I liked that thought- as much as I liked the hilarious image of our two nerds now feverishly sketching out some design in the dust, using some sticks the Firemakers had packed that morning (no trees on the ridge means no wood for a fire, and if we were stuck on the ridge for the night...)

The Firemaker, I would have expected, for Setareh seemed the type to sketch out designs. I did NOT expect it from the Turkmene. But she seemed to understand the designs almost as well as Setareh and, from time to time. She would tug the branch from Setareh's hand and sketch an enhancement with the branch grasped in her teeth.

Setareh would glance it, blue eyes squinting and either say, "Hmmm... didn't think about that" or "Horsefeathers. That won't fly. No pun intended."

Together the two of them seemed to agree on something. I thought that maybe the Turkmene was using that information stored in her, but it took Setareh's design skills to actually make sense of it and see if it applied to this situation.

Altogether very weird, and very interesting.

"All right, Horsebutt. Move it! Move it! Move it! Against the wind!" blind Gatalas yelled, one hand stuck up to test the wind.

"I concur from this side!" Setareh called, holding the Draco head, newly mounted on its pole, its silken tail belling out from its head, indicating the direction of the wind.

:: G'luck, Lux-spark!:: Eyeful called to me, and then she slid into her fluid trot, fast but strangely smooth. She moved in the direction her Rider and the Draco banner indicated- against the wind. And, up here on the Rodna Ridge, there was plenty of against-the- wind.

I let my claws loosen from the saddle leather. My body was thrown backwards by Eyeful's motion and the wind blasting at me. I felt shock spring through my system as I tumbled into the air. Painful memories flashed; memories of the Monsters helping me to "fly" and throwing darts at my wings, and of my painful escape from them when the wind hurt my wings.

But then there was a magnificent THRUM! I felt the soft rope "har-ness" around my chest, shoulders contract as the rope between my front paws snapped taut.

That rope ended in a very, solidly secure knot tied around the cantle hooks of Eyeful's light but solid, tough, secure saddle.

"Wings, Lux!" yelled Setareh, "Wings!"

Kourosh barked in agreement, it seemed.

::Now!:: Eyeful called, ::Wings out and up!::

I snapped my wings out and felt the wind bend at them, forcing them back. I started to wince in pain.

::Cup your wings, Lux!:: squawked Jessamine the Juggernaut and Blossom the Butcher in tandem.

::Funnel the wind! It's your servant. Let your wings tell the wind what to do!:: Jessamine hovered in front of me for a moment, demonstrating how to set her wings.

I tried it and... wonders happened! Hooray for wonders!

Suddenly I was hovering in the air, floating still, not being controlled by the wind. Instead, I was being supported by the wind. It cradled me, pushing up and back and forth, and it felt so lovely and good as it sang along my sides.

Below me, I could see the rocky and dusty ground and Eyeful's yellow-orange back with its distinctive red-brown stripe tracing the length of her spine- well, what of it was not covered by a saddle or packs. I could not see her feet at all, only her striped legs as she pumped them along. She was slightly in front of me, and, I realized, she was the anchor that tied me to the ground- in a good way. The taut rope connected me to her, so I would not blow off into the unknown. I realized I could practice my wing movements and and steering while not having to be afraid of the wind.

It was like the wind and I could get to know each other.

::The wind is your ally:: Jessamine called soothingly to me, flapping next to me as we both watched Eyeful trotting below us, ::The wind spirits are strong and must be respected, but they also will work with you when you know how to read them. They protect our People.::

The Firemakers continued "scenting" the wind with Draco and finger, and Eyeful shifted, always heading into the wind. Gatalas had it a lot harder, since he could not be close to Eyeful, but several Sisters flew near him, barking and chirruping to let him know the right away to move and avoid natural hazards. He only tripped and fell a few times, but each time he came back up, laughing.

My squeaks of delight were making him joyful as well!

I watched Jessamine the Juggernaut as she demonstrated for me how to fold my wings, and soon I found myself able to make my body roll from side to side and to swoop and to rise up, using my second set of wings.

Jessamine could not teach me about my secondaries since Sticky Fire People have only one set of wings. However, as I followed Jessamine the Juggernaut in trying to climb, I felt the smaller wings at my flanks automatically move to help provide the thrust my first set needed to ascend.

Amazing, even after only a few wing beats, the air higher up was thinner, cooler and yet somehow sweeter.

::We Sticky Fire People call it the Sky Truth:: Jessamine laughed while Primrose the Berserk warbled in joy and did wheeling somersaults in the sky around both of us, ::It's been said some of our greatest philosophers gained their ideas while flying high because it clears our perceptions instead of clouds them::

We were lucky that the wind direction favored both my flying and our track along the ridge, so that I could both practice and we could make our way forward.

The view was... well, scorching powerful! I saw Eyeful, the Sarmatians and Kourosh so small and funny looking since their heads seemed big and it was hard to see their feet.

And the world presented itself to me, and, for a short time, it was mine to enjoy! I saw the ridge and the valleys beyond and, beyond the valleys, more mountains marching into the distance. Some of them wore rags of mist around their flanks. And, on their flanks, I also saw little, slow moving dots that I realized were sheep and goats and some funny creature that seemed like both.

::Chamois:: Primrose the Berserk sent to me, along with an image of the animal, :: They roam wild in these mountains. They have never been tamed by Firemakers. They are wild, like we Amazons.::

I thought I also a light-colored horse moving in the distance when I turned my head to look backwards, but I could not be sure. It did not have a rider, so that, at least, meant we were safe from a possible enemy Firemaker/Monster. Just a wild horse, then.

I also saw, hidden here and there, tiny Firemaker settlements, clusters of buildings huddled together, though it did not seem like forbidding huddling but more like a warm shelter in the mountains. One such settlement even had a tall building whose circular roof sparkled in amazing colors of red and gold and blue. I was surprised I could see it at such a distance, but maybe the Firemakers had intended this.

Anyway, this world- the world of the Sky Truth- this was the world that the Sisters saw every day. And, now, I could see it, too! I flung back my head and bugled, and this time, what came out was a quite respectable roar- high in tone, but smooth. No squeaking here, sir!

There were now many Sisters of the Scale swirling around me, correcting my wing position, suggesting better ways to tuck my legs, hold my long neck out. I took their advice, also combining it with elongating and shrinking my tail. I found I could go higher and turn and bank better when the tail was shorter. When it was longer, it caught the wind and helped stabilize me so I could glide longer than the Sisters could, letting the wind carry me so I could rest. I also noticed that my segmented tail has strange membranes that flared up straight out from the tail.

::Right angle, that is called:: Eyeful called up to me, just as Setareh shouted the same thing, ::And those membranes along your tail are called... let me check... flukes!::

Whatever it was, those odd "flukes" helped make the floating on a long tail even more delightful.

::Now da's something'' I haven't seen on a Person before,:: Purple Sonja glided around to face me and then dipped so she was upside down for a moment. A huge draconic grin carved across her face, ::It's like yer tail is one big eel, Lux. But it's like a good sort of eel.::

::You mean eels are bad?:: I called back her. This was news to me.

Various hisses, sparks of fire, spitting and vomiting sounds filled the sky for moment. I got the message.

::Funny, I had to eat eel a lot when I was a prisoner of the River Rats,:: I told them, curving my wings to catch the latest draft, ::It didn't kill me, as far as I know, anyway. I can't comment on the taste since, like everything they fed me, it was fly blown and rotten.::

I could almost count it in my mind... three, two, one...

::AWWWW, Poor Lux.:: exploded from sixteen Amazon minds, punctuated by various additions of sweet kitten, poor dear, wee, innocent one, etc.

I admit it, I loved it.

Then Eyeful, after assessing my confidence, broke into a rolling canter, the rocking speed-gait of Turkmenes. It picked up the pace and the wind. It pulled me along, but even though faster and rougher, I welcomed it! My wings adjusted to it, and it was actually fun!

Ohhhhhh, yessss! I laughed and warbled and plunged my wings harder, catching on the wind and letting my body dance on it. The wind rolled around me, tickling me, nuzzling me, caressing me, laughing with me.

Below me, Eyeful gave an uncharacteristic squealing neigh and bucked, reminding me of the playful foals, and I heard shouts of joy and clapping from the Firemakers.

The world flew around me in the happiest blur of my life. And, I am not ashamed to admit, some of that blur came from the salt water gathering in my eyes. But the wind threw away my tears, so all anyone caught from me was my bugling, my roaring and my laughter.

And, sadly, my happy experience in the sky came to an end. It had lasted longer than I had expected, but, eventually Eyeful slowed to a trot and then an amble and then a walk as a tall pole came into sight. Another funny crossed pole, but this one painted in stripes of black and red.

Eyeful came to a halt and then I felt myself dropping down, down, down until I landed on her saddle again.

"Here's where we break from the ridge and head down to the valley, hopefully spend the night, " Setareh's rich, husky voice sliced through the air, "Then we leave the Rodna Range and head into the Bârgău Range, via the Tihuţa Pass."

Well, those are Firemaker words. What I heard was something that sounded like "BIR-ja'ooh Range" and "Tee-hutz-uh Pass."

Anyway, I was back on the boring ground (well, at least on Eyeful's saddle. Not that she's boring, but it was not the same as... flying!)

We descended, the air becoming cooler as we came in more among trees to shade the sun. Not much to report on the way down, which I suppose is a blessing.

Then, once again we were in a valley; though there was a river here, it was smaller, and the landscape seemed much dryer than in the Prislop region.

But, it was water!

I felt Gatalas untie my rope and, not waiting for him to take off that crude rope har-ness, I leapt down to the river bank and joined my friends.

Everyone- two and four legged, winged or not, gathered on the banks and drank. I grinned to see how Eyeful plunged her nose into the water and drank, her longish ears switching back and forth as she did. It made me wonder, for a moment, if the switching of her ears somehow helped the water flow into her mouth.

I drank too, lapping up the water, savoring its clean taste, flavored gently with plants and clean rocks.

And then, feeling good, something made me flex my wings and jump in the air to try and fly without assistance.

Mouths and muzzles rose, dripping, from the stream and all glanced up to see my heroic launch into the air.

And my equally heroic drop, straight into the slimy, boggy mud a short distance from the stream.

I raised my head up, mud running from my muzzle, wings, my... well, my everywhere.

::Awww, Poofcrud!::

::Ya gotta learn how to talk to the wind, Lux-honey::, Purple Sonja crooned to me, as she and the others helped me scrub the mud off my hide. I desisted mightily at first- I had to show them I was not a helpless little kitten, thank you!

But it was a particularly sticky and nasty mud, and the quick-clawed terrors could scrape it off me very fast, faster than I could on my own. Plus, they added it to the list of things I would do to help them once I would fly and hunt. That put me at ease. I did not want to be the cute widdle kitten who had to have my bottom licked clean. I was a dragon, a potential lord of the sky! Being widdle and cute did not help me with attaining that lofty goal.

But their scratching claws caught the dirt- and a few itches and muscle knots I had not noticed before- and I found myself relaxing and letting them scrub the mud off me. They used their claws and some plants in the river that they called sand weed. Setareh and Gatalas called them "horse tail ferns" and praised how good they are to use for cleaning both the body and the bowls they used to serve our water and broth. Plus, Setareh told me, as she watched the Sisters finish scrubbing me, it was used by her Firemakers for medical purposes, too.

They also untied the muddy inventor's harness from me, tossing it in the water and scrubbed with sand weed until it was clean again.

::Hold still, Lux!:: Sadie the Salacious called to me, scraping down my back, ::Believe it or not, that little flight and fall must have triggered something in your body. Your scales are peeling off in our claws! No- don't get upset, kid. It's called 'molting.' I think it's time for your adult coloring to come forth. And I was here to... sob... see it.::

Sadie wiped a paw across her muzzle and then glared at me with a little hiss, as if to prove to me she was still a tough dragoness.

Scraping, more scraping (aahh, purr... that itched, and oooh- that was nice. And, wow- I feel- cleaner and better now that old skin is off me and- hey, you're ripping off my cast! But- my leg doesn't need it anymore... I think?)

Next. I was dumped under the invigoratingly chilly water by several Sisters, all laughing and casually discussing their various exploits of bravery that day, grand feats that usually including scouting for us, teaching me to fly, or carving initials and Amazon Unit sigils on trees.

Then I was instructed to roll in the clean grass to dry. I did so, and shook it off, then lay down to bask in the descending sun.

::Oh, Lux:: the Turkmene's rough but beloved thought voice made me crack my eyes open, lifting all three of my lids, ::Your scales, your hide. You're... magnificent.::

::Wha?:: I lurched to my feet amid purrs and trills and a Firemaker whistle of admiration.

The Firemakers had stopped setting up their hide shelter they had been building under an overhang. Setareh wore a wide grin, Gatalas only confusion. But when Eyeful trotted over and he touched her shoulder, his own bearded face split into radiant smile.

"Who'd have thought the scales were hiding... this?" he breathed, softly, "Lux-spark, you... are.. a spark."

I snorted in frustration, ::But I cannot see myself!::

I felt a nip and a nudge and then Jessamine and the quiet, rose-brown Sister whose name I had not yet learned were nudging me towards a part of the river that caught itself in a little, glasslike tidal pool framed with long fox sedge grass and horse tail ferns.

For the first time ever, I saw myself.

Indeed, I was not a Lightning Person or a Sticker Fire Person... or a Naphtha or Magnesium Person, for that matter.

I was something very different.

The young drake-kitten who looked back at me from the water was something I did not expect. He was slender- oh so slender, bones sticking out in a few places. And faded scars still riddled his body and tail. But he was also... illuminating.

I was longer and leaner than any dragon I had seen so far- my neck, my legs, my torso, and my amazing, long, segmented tail with its rippling, translucent side flukes. The tail ended in a fork that was too small for steering. It was more like the tail fork of a fish. My legs ended in pawed feet with four "fingers", each ending in a hooked claw, and a fifth clawed finger set higher up. Pads on the bottom of my feet protected them and silenced my movements.

My head was long and lean and it did resemble a reptilian wolf, but my expression seemed more.. well.. dragon like, of course!

But, like a wolf's, my head started broad and then narrowed to a muzzle, reinforced on the jaws that would have a powerful bite. I had fangs, too, and a barbed tongue that stretched long and red when I stuck it from my mouth. Like a wolf, I had a "ruff" around my shoulders and jaws, made of soft and strong sensors. They could "puff up" like a wolf ruff or lie flat and sleek against my neck so they looked like scales. I just had to decide, and my ruff fell in shape as I wished. Two long, wolf like ear- sensors pricked up from my head. One was sharp and handsome. The other, the left ear shredded in a River Rat dart game, tried to prick up, but the top half was just shattered shreds that dripped in streamers to fall along the side of my face. It gave me a rather rakish- and , yes, even a bit forlorn air.

There also seemed to be some sensors growing in under my chin (tiny barbs) and between my ear sensors- also curling little barbs. It seemed too soon to tell what they would grow into.

My coloring- that seemed to be the magnificent thing. I had previously been a rather blechy and boring drab olive- brown. Now those scales had been scraped away. I was now a deep, deep gray, but there was an underlying, very quiet, subtle pearl like sheen (I found out later it only came out in light. In darkness, I blended into the shadows). The pearl sheen reminded me of the ethereal, mystical and quiet swirl of muted colors I would see sometimes in mollusk shells or abalone.

The River Rat/Vikings when they saw mollusk shells or abalone shells, stomped and shattered them, proclaiming them fool's pearl. But I had been awed by those simple swirls of pearly pink and blue and gold hidden in a dark grey shell.

I was a dark gray, pearlescent dragon. My coloring was not like Toothless', whose coat was more a sleek deep gray/blue color with black stripes. Instead, I was a softly pearlescent, deep gray. It would not stand out, so I could easily hide in the shadows, but when I stepped into light and wanted to be seen, those soft pearly hues would shift back in forth in the light, depending on how I moved.

And- yes- I had stripes! I had a vision on the Dreampaths I was striped, and I was right! Deep gray stripes ran parallel to my spine, tracking from my jaw, along my neck and sides into my tail. There were pearly knobs located periodically along the stripes. I had no idea their purpose.

The strange pearly knobs seemed to congregate along my face, forming a natural, pearly mask around my eyes and down to my muzzle.

It very much looked like the muzzle and face flashes that wolves have- along the ruff- and really made me look like a dragon-wolf, and it took me by surprise.

Almond-shaped golden eyes with warm red flecks stood out in the mask, along with wide, black, cat-like slit pupils. Mysterious eyes. but I could also see in them warmth and a wish to be loved... as well as a wish to remain a fierce, wild mystery.

So, this strange wolf-dragon kitten was me. I certainly did not find him beautiful- he was too bony and covered with scars for that. But his... my...

::Yeh, yeh, yeh, yer kind o' pretty, okay. Deal with it.:: Purple Sonja landed in front of me, blocking my view of my reflection, ::Okay, so maybe yer kinda handsome. But da's on de outside. On da inside is what matters. Like I said, my Purpleness burns in side of me- and all my Sisters shine on da inside, even if we's are dull on da outside. But da truth is, Lux, ye gotta prove ta dragons yer handsome on da inside. Firemakers love da appearances. Dragons are a bit harder ta impress. And, if you let your looks go ta yer head, I'll be more'n happy to knock some humility into ya. I like ya cuz yer pretty on da inside, Lux. Don't forget that.::

I took her words to mind as we helped the Firemakers set up camp, cook food, heal wounds and then all of us fall into a good sleep.

The hoof beats woke us all in the dawn, the same hoof beats that had been plaguing the last few days as we journeyed through the mountains.

I groaned with tiredness in my eyes, but I came awake with the spark of a Firemaker light in the mist, and Setareh's scrawny figure set in light as she laid a fire.

I yawned and crawled out to join Setareh, worming under her arm to lie against her and purr. And she welcomed me, even with her weapons laid close by to grab. My friendship with her was something she valued highly.

And both of us saw a horse ghost itself out of the morning mist, a thin but very strong horse. An eerie but yet oddly beautiful horse.

A cremello Turkmene with no mane but strong and kind (and yet still scarily fierce) blue eyes and a glowing ivory coat. Thin, but glowing with life, renewed life.

"Farna," Setareh breathed as Gatalas moaned and tossed in his bedroll, following a hidden dream in his world.

It was, indeed, Farna. Thin, grass and mud stained, but proud and glowing with Turkmene determination on her creamy hide.

She stopped in front of Setareh and I as my Priest Firemaker friend tended the fire to cook the morning breakfast: gruel and leftover stew.

Eyeful raised her head and whickered loudly, and Farna answered her.

Farna stepped daintily until she was in front of Setareh and I, where I curled next to Setareh's side.

Setareh's blue, slanted eyes opened wide, and I saw a mist of wonder in them.

Farna dipped her head slowly.

Setareh stood from her crouch near the fire and bowed back to Farna, the former chieftain's horse.

And Farna ducked down and bowed to Setareh on one knee.

"No, you silly!" Setareh laughed softly, "I am from peasant stock. Banadaspos was a Scepter Holder. I am a Forge Priest, but only a peasant girl at heart."

Farna tossed her head and nickered softly, as if laughing. She rose on her hind legs and pawed the air, then came back down and did a bit of a prancing dance in front of us, a dance of joy.

It caught Setareh off guard and she laughed softly as I purred in delight. She pulled me up onto her shoulders and pet me until I purred, but her thoughts were to seek comfort from me, not to coddle me like a pet.

She knew better than that to treat a dragon as a mere pet.

Farna stomped a hoof, attracting Setareh's full attention. Her eerie blue eyes caught Setareh's fire-scorched blue eyes.

Tears leaked from Setareh's eyes, but she did not brush them away. Instead she raised her right hand and looked away.

And Farna walked up, laying her muzzle in Setareh's forge-scarred palm. Setareh turned to look back and caught Farna's gaze.

And, I swear, Farna winked.

And Setareh found herself winking back.

And I did , too- just for the fun of it.

Setareh threw her arms around the tall warhorse and hugged her, pressing her face against the tall mare's neck. Farna lowered her head and blew softly down Setareh's neck and back.

::Welcome, Lux:: Farna told me, and I found myself leaping on her shoulders and nuzzling her. So we all shared a bond.

"Oh, I feel whole again," Setareh whispered with calm dignity, even though tears trickled from her closed eyes, "Ravenwing- oh, Ravenwing. But, he asked me to go on, for his sake. So, I hope he is happy. I know I am... thank you Farna and Lux."

::But I didn't do anything:: I chirped.

Farna nipped back at me, gently, ::You were there for her, Lux-spark. You carried her great soul with your own great soul. You are a dragon to praise, kitten. And your humility makes you an even greater dragon hero. You held her in place for me, Lux. You saw me in the cavern after I lost Banadaspos. I was crying inside, not able to go back to our camp because I was waiting for my Rider.::

She nickered and nuzzled Setareh who squeezed her harder and made sure I was a part of the three way embrace.

::And I kept my word,:: Farna said, :: I waited for my Rider. And the wait is over. For my new Rider is Setareh and... in some strange way... you, Lux.::